The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, hypertension, and an acquired psychiatric disorder other than depressive disorder with anxiety to include bipolar disorder. The claims for reopening of service connection for congestive heart failure and kidney failure have been granted due to new evidence submitted after the March 2015 denial. However, the Board has denied the secondary service connection claims as there is no established in-service event or injury for these conditions.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran's congestive heart failure and kidney failure are related to his hypertension, which is not service-connected. The second Shedden element has not been met as an in-service event or injury has not been established for these conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, hypertension, acquired psychiatric disorder other than depressive disorder with anxiety to include bipolar disorder, congestive heart failure, kidney failure
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 25, 2020
- Citation
- 20075543
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 20075543.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.